Dumb It Down (Day 42)

The Kinks - "This Time Tomorrow"
Broken Social Scene - "Capture The Flag"
Is it just me or does this first track on Broken Social Scene's "breakthrough" album, You Forgot It In People, sound like something Pink Floyd may have played at Pompeii? It's really just an introductory track, but it kind epitomizes this Canadian collective for me - - they're freaking impossible to pin down. Granted, I haven't been listening to them for that long, but they don't have the same immediacy of that other Canadian supergroup - - not that there's anything wrong with that. (And, of course, BSS have their own celebrated chanteuse [Leslie Feist], just as The New Pornographers [Neko Case] do.) So while "Capture The Flag" isn't indicative of their sound, no one song is. There are atmospheric tracks, driving guitar tracks, electronic tracks...a real kitchen sink approach. It's just the kind of thing that abstractly I love about the band, but somehow manages to keep them at arms length. (Esoteric song titles don't help either. "Late Nineties Bedroom Rock For The Missionaries," anyone?) All this is to say, I think I need to spend a little more alone time with The Broken Social Scene. Please don't tell my wife.
Pernice Brothers - "Dumb It Down"
Son Volt - "Circadian Rhythm"
Serge Gainsbourg - "Par Hasard et Pas Rase"
Akron/Family - "The Lightning Bolt Of Compassion"
Los Lobos - "Don't Ask Why"
Nada Surf - "Your Legs Grow"
Miles Davis - "The Maids of Cadiz"
The Olivia Tremor Control -"Today I Lost a Tooth"
The White Stripes - "The Denial Twist"
Bishop Allen - "Calendar"
The Fiery Furnaces - "The Old Hag Is Sleeping"
Sloan - "Fading Into Obscurity"
It's Canada day on WILTOMWTWT (the acronym rolls right off the tongue, no?). And this band in particular proves that long before Vegas coined the phrase, it should really have been "What Happens In Canada Stays in Canada"...at least when it comes to pop. While earning gold records up North, Sloan had modest success with the grungy pop single "Underwhelmed" in 1992 on alternative radio in the U.S., but that was about it. Too bad, because what was to follow shortly after was a full embrace of 70s era power pop, culminating in the amazing 1996 album One Chord To Another. Following that album they basically churned out more of the same, pleasant but forgettable. That is until 2006's Never Hear The End Of It. This is a definite 60s throwback record with Beatle-like melodies and psychedelic flourishes. Plus there are 30 songs that average under 2 minutes in length. It's a really fun record. This song is great and features a few tonal shifts in just over 4 minutes. If you forgot or soured on this band (or never listened to them), do check it out. And don't do it for me, do it for Canada.

And then I got to work.

Today's Stats
Total songs listened to: 14
Total minutes of music (approx.): 51
Song with the most previous plays: "Dumb It Down" - 11
Miscellaneous factoid about my trip to work today: I kept smelling bacon. Why do you taunt me, delicious smell of swine flesh?